Notebook

A Message to WebbC'mon, Karrie Like it or not, as the LPGA's top player you have aresponsibility to do more for the tour

Dear Karrie,

Congratulations on your victory at the Oldsmobile Classic, yoursixth win of the season. Without question you have become one ofthe most important figures in the history of women's golf. Thatis the reason for this letter. I don't have to tell you that theLPGA is corporate America's third choice when it comes to golf.When a sponsor can't be found for the du Maurier Classic, a majorchampionship, the situation speaks for itself.

Fairly or unfairly, to make their product more attractive, thewomen, as Ty Votaw and every LPGA commissioner before him havesaid, have to try harder, and the top player hardest of all. Inmy opinion this is an area in which you haven't been doing yourjob.

Take what happened two weeks ago at the Women's British Open. Youincurred a two-stroke penalty in the third round after acommentator on the BBC telecast correctly reported that you hadtaken an improper drop. You were understandably upset about yourerror, which was committed largely because you avoided anofficial in the interest of pace of play. It was alsounderstandable that you declined a BBC interview request for fearthat you might say something intemperate. But that's exactly whatyou did a few minutes later when you told a BBC representativetrying to film your answers to print journalists, "I will neverdo another interview with the BBC. You can shove it. When I'mover here next year, don't even ask, don't even think about it."

Votaw didn't want to dwell on the incident, saying, "I'm chalkingit up to a bad day." Your agent at IMG, Jay Burton, called it "areaction moment." I call it inexcusable, another example of thepetulance you too often exhibit.

Why, for instance, are you annoyed when asked to compare yourexploits with those of Tiger Woods? Am I missing something? Am Imistaken to think that being compared with Woods--andstatistically, the similarities are amazing--is a compliment andan easy way to get added exposure for the women's game?

Come on, Karrie, this diva act has to stop. It hurts the LPGA.Whether you like it or not, you're the face of the associationand are judged on more than what you do on the course. You don'thave to be the second coming of Nancy Lopez, and I respect thefact that you are shy. I know you've taken refuge in anothercomparison--with Mickey Wright--who preferred to let her recordspeak for her, and still does. But Wright also did a lot of heavylifting to promote the LPGA, including serving as its presidentfor two years. She gave back a great deal, probably more than wasgood for her career.

No one expects you to sacrifice that much. Nor am I saying thatyou are always difficult. You are to be commended for workingwith the Christopher Reeve Paralysis Foundation, which assistsvictims of paralysis, such as your swing coach, Kelvin Haller.You showed your appreciation for the LPGA's early pathfinderswith a well-delivered speech at the tour's 50th anniversary galain January. When I covered your win at last year's du Maurier, Ifound you cooperative, insightful and likable.

You have the tools. You just need to polish them with the samediligence you've applied to your game. Although carrying theweight of a tour on 25-year-old shoulders is expecting a lot,such responsibility comes with the territory you now occupy.Woods has accepted this reality, and it's not coincidental thathis image, his life and his game have improved.

Look at your duties as an opportunity, not as a burden. Golf isas popular as it has ever been, and women's golf should be ridingthe wave. If you work to connect with the public, you'll beremembered as a herald as well as a great player. You don't haveto change to do it. Just let your best self come through.

Sincerely,Jaime Diaz

The Nicklaus FactorWho's Best at Bear Tracks?

What type of golfer has the best shot at winning next week'sCanadian Open at Glen Abbey Golf Club, outside Toronto? The kindwho hits the ball high and works it from left to right. That'sbecause Glen Abbey is one of eight Jack Nicklaus-designed golfcourses that have hosted Tour events in the last decade, andhistory shows that players who can hit a high cut--Nicklaus'spreferred shot--have the best records on his layouts.

Among those who have played at least 15 tournaments on Nicklaustracks--in addition to Glen Abbey, the Tour sites are Annandale(Southern Farm Bureau), Castle Pines (International), EnglishTurn (New Orleans), Montreux (Reno), Muirfield Village(Memorial), Shoal Creek (PGA) and Valhalla (PGA)--Greg Norman hasthe best record, with four victories and 12 other top 10finishes. Next best is Fred Couples with one win and eight othertop 10s. Tied for third with eight top 10s are David Duval (sevenof his were seconds or thirds) and Vijay Singh (two wins). DavisLove III and Phil Mickelson have been less consistent but theyhave two victories each. All are long drivers. Among those whohave played fewer than 15 tournaments on courses that Jack built,two long hitters have had great success. Tiger Woods has threevictories, including two at Muirfield Village and one atValhalla, and Carlos Franco has two wins and a third.

Shorter hitters and those who have trouble moving the ball leftto right usually struggle on Nicklaus courses. Mark O'Meara, ashorter hitter who normally moves the ball right to left, won the'95 Canadian Open at Glen Abbey but otherwise has only one top 10in 29 starts.

Some short hitters simply pass up tournaments at Bear lairs.Loren Roberts, who has never ranked higher than 150th on the Tourin driving distance in the last decade, has played 17 Nicklauscourses during that time (with one top 10) but with diminishingfrequency. In the last four years he has skipped all the Nicklaussites except the '99 Canadian Open and this year's PGA.

Bagging Majors

If Tiger Woods wins next year's Masters and Steve Williams(above) is on the bag, the 36-year-old New Zealander will becomethe first caddie to win all four major championships. Here arethe caddies with the most victories in the majors.

Willie Peterson '63, '65, '66, '72, '75 Masters (Jack Nicklaus).The Book: A flamboyant character who was said to live beyond his means, Peterson once told Nicklaus, "Mister Jack, I need to have more than anyone's ever been paid."

Willie (Pappy) Stokes '38 Masters (Henry Picard), '48 Masters(Claude Harmon), '51 and '53 Masters (Ben Hogan), '56 Masters(Jack Burke Jr.). The Book: Born on the grounds of AugustaNational, Stokes excelled at pulling the right club--withoutlooking at a yardage book. He told Burke in 1956 before thewinning putt on the 72nd green, "Cruise it right in there, Mr.Burke. Cruise it in."

FOUR WINS

Nathaniel (Ironman) Avery '58, '60, '62, '64 Masters (ArnoldPalmer). The Book: A fine player in his own right, Avery fired upPalmer down the stretch of the '60 Masters by asking, "Mr.Palmer, are we choking?" Says Palmer, "Ironman wasn't thegreatest caddie, but his understanding of what made me tick wasprofound."

Jeff (Squeeky) Medlen '91 PGA (John Daly), '92 PGA, '94 BritishOpen, '94 PGA (Nick Price). The Book: On every tee at CrookedStick in '91, Medlen provided Daly with his winning swingthought, "Kill." Says Price, "When Squeeky and I were clicking in the early '90s, we could read each other's minds."

Dave Musgrove '79 British Open (Seve Ballesteros), '85 BritishOpen, '88 Masters (Sandy Lyle), '98 U.S. Open (Lee Janzen). TheBook: Quiet but strong-willed, Musgrove says a lot with a fewwords. He clashed with the fiery Ballesteros, calmed the gentlebut jumpy Lyle and was stoically consistent for the intenseJanzen.

Fanny Sunesson '90 Masters, '90 and '92 British Open, '96 Masters(Nick Faldo). The Book: She earned her reputation for working ashard as any caddie with her attentiveness to Faldo during hismarathon practice sessions.

Steve Williams '99 PGA, '00 U.S. Open, '00 British Open, '00 PGA(Tiger Woods). The Book: Williams has an energy and intensitythat make him a good fit for Woods. Says Raymond Floyd, "Steve'sthe only caddie I've had who didn't choke."

The players finished the NEC Invitational in the dark because,to them, it's just an aimless exhibition dressed up as one ofthe World Golf Championships. The NEC, with its patchwork fieldof cuppers and European money leaders, cries out, "What am I?"The International Federation of PGA Tours needs to give thisproblem child serious attention before it embarrasses the wholefamily of World tour events.

ThreesomesWhat do these players have in common?

--Beth Daniel--Dottie Pepper--Sherri Steinhauer

They have the best records in Solheim Cup history among allplayers with five or more matches. Daniel is 7-3-2, Pepper is12-4-1 and Steinhauer is 5-2.

FeedbackIf Tiger Woods is victorious in next year's Masters, he willhave won the four majors consecutively. Should that feat beconsidered a Grand Slam, or must he win them all in the samecalendar year?

It's a Slam......53%It's not a Sla...47%

--Based on 15,648 responses to our informal survey

Next question: Whom should CBS hire to replace Ken Venturi, whois rumored to be retiring at the end of the season? Paul Azinger,Peter Jacobsen, Bill Murray, Mark O'Meara or Ben Wright?

Vote at golfplus.cnnsi.com.

Numbers

Ken Venturi passed over 12 higher-ranked players to make PaulAzinger one of his captain's picks for the Oct. 19-22 PresidentsCup outside Washington, D.C. Will Venturi's gamble pay off? Hereare the five lowest-ranked wild-card picks ever in thePresidents and the Ryder Cups, and their record in the matches.

Brittany Adams, Huntington, W.Va.Brittany, 16, became the second-youngest winner of the Women'sWest Virginia Amateur, shooting a 16-over-par 232 for aone-stroke victory over two-time champ Yvonne Cox, 22, ofCharleston. A junior at Midland High, where she plays on theboys' team, Brittany also took the State Girls Juniorchampionship in the 15-16 age division.

Troy Gillespie, Bloomington, Ind.Gillespie, a 31-year-old car-wash manager, won the BloomingtonCity Championship for a third time, beating Dick Meacham, 45, ofBloomington 9 and 7 in the final. Gillespie also won this titlein 1991 and '99 and is a member of the Bloomington Golf Hall of Fame. He closed out Meacham on the 11th hole with his ninthbirdie of the round.